Endless conveyer



s. G. MARGLES ET AL ENDLESS CONVEYER Filed Sept. 23, 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet l May 15,4923.

' 1,455,542 S. G. MARGLES ET AL ENDLESS CONVEYER Filed Sept, 23, 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 I p B r a 'IIIIIIIIIA m c 67 Ya I H 3 r1 l8 Swumdov JWZ L 44%! Z 6. 4 I

May 15, 1923.

3 Sheets-Sheet 5 s. G. MARGLES ET AL ENDLESS CONVEYER Filed Sept. 25, 1921 Patented may 15, 123.

SAMUEL G. MARGLES,

OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, AND CHARLES W. E. NIENDORFF, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNORS TO OTIS ELEVATOR COMPANY, OF JER- SEY CITY, NEW JERSEY A CORPORATION NEW JERSEY.

' ENDLESS CONVEYER.

Application filed September 23, 1921. Serial No. 502,825.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we SAMUEL G. MARGLES and CHARLES W. E. IENDORFF, citizens of the United States of America, residin ,re-

spectively, in Brooklyn, county of ings, State of New York, and Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey,

have invented a new and useful Improvement in Endless Conveyors, of which the- I side views of the upper and lower carriages,

following is a specification.

' Our invention relates to incline endless conveyors, and has to do with certain improvements in conveyors of the step type commonly known as escalators, having a double chain drive. Essens tially the invention consists in certain modifications in construction and arrangement of parts, such changes in effect tending toward simplicity and cheapness, and the 0vercom ing of certain objectionable features, which objectionable features will be pointed out fully hereinafter.

One of the objects of the invention is the insertion of the outer, or what is known as the front step wheels within the chain links of the drive chains forming a part thereof.

Another object of the invention is, using a three point suspension, which requires comparatively little accuracy in carriage alignment, and permits the use of "one single tracked carriage of circular curvature at the upper landing and one at the lower landing,

" instead of two double tracked carriages of constant speed curvature at each landing.

A further object of the invention'is .in the construction ofthe'steps, the effect tending toward simplicity, thesteps accommodating either flat treads or cleat treads.

A still further object is the elimination of the see-saw movement in the presentin vention of an escalator, and that no addi-- tional devices or parts are used to overcome this undesirable feature, inherent in most step type conveyers,'especially in'the single chain drive type. w With'the above objects in view, the invention consists in the apparatus "hereinafter in drawings, in which:

cordance with the present invention.

described and illustrated in the accompanylongitudinal see more particularly .not being shown.

3, formingan integral step frame, 4;.

Figure 2 illustrates a similar view of the lower landing and of the escalator.

Figure 3 illustrates a partial section on line a,a of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 4 illustrates a partial section on line b-b of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows. I 1 Figures 5 and 6 illustrate respectively,

the views embodying a section of a track, together with its extension, the track and extension being located on the side opposite to the carriage.

Figures 7 and 8 are respective plan views of Figures 5 and 6 the steps in either case Figures 9 and gitudinal views of a stepwith chain at.-

tached, both being partly in section, the ste in one instance accommodating a flat trea the other a cleat tread respectively.

10 illustrate enlarged lon- Figure 11 illustrates a plan view of Figures 9 and 10 together, with chain attached, the position of the steps in this instance be- 1ng somewhere on the incline of theescalator.

Figure 12 is a front end elevation of the cleat trea-d type of step in Figure 11.

Like reference characters denote similar parts in all of the figures.

The conveyer comprises a series of steps as 7 A, which form an endless movable tread 7 platform or surface connecting difi'erent,

proper of each step plain type. The former type of tread is used wvith thesteps in Figure l, and referring to Flgures 10, 11 and 12, comprises longitudiing, D, Figure.

level, he comb having teeth or prongs adapted to re ister with the grooves, ,2, of steps. T

the

11, is shown placed within the recessed web,

3, and suitably secured thereto,.the securing e latter 'type of tread, so-called the plain or flat tread, 5, is used with the steps d' in Figure 2, andreferringto Figures 9 and.

floor levels B, and C. The tread surface a may be either the rib or a horizontal recessed web,

points, as in the previous types of step,not being shown. The escalator in this instance is commonly called the shunt type, the load carried being directed to one side or shunted from the escalator, when the floor level is reached by means of balustrading, E, the floor landing, which is the floor level, B, in this instance, being level with the horizontal run of the escalator.

The above description tends to effect attention to the fact that the step used with the present invention of an escalator willaccommodate either the rib or flat tread, without any additional parts to the steps or escalator proper.

Each step proper, as hereinbefore pointed out, is made up of one piece, comprising more essentially the horizontal web, 3, and a plain curved riser, 6. Referring to Figures 9 to 12 inclusive, to the riser, 6, at its lower end, is welded an axle, 7, which carries, at its outer ends, rearinner step wheels, 8, and axle collars, 9, which are secured to the axle by pins, 10. A pair of outer, or what maybe termed the front step wheels, 11, are carried at the outer ends of separate axles, 12, supported by a pair of se arated bearings, 13, which are welded to t e step frame. To the riser, 6, of each step and each finger, 14, of bearings, 13, there is welded respectively the ends of two angle braces, 15. The rear and front step wheels are adapted to travel respectively on suit- .able track rails such as 16 and 17. The

track rails are arranged in a well known manner to form a horizontal run at the landings and an incline run between the landings, these rails forming an upper and lower run for the steps, and being united on one side at the upper level by a suitable car riage, 18, the rails on the other'side being united by a suitable track extension, 19, see Figures .5 and 7. In a similar manner the rails are united at the lower level to another carriage, 20, on the side opposite to that of the carriage, 18, at the upper level, the rails on the other side at the lower landing are united to another suitable track extension, 21, see'Figures 6 and 8.

There is provided for the purpose of driving the steps, two endless chains, 22, arranged on a center line coinciding with the center line'of sprockets, 23 and 24, of which there are four in number, two at each floor level, only one of each sprockets, 23 and 24, being shown, as seen in Figures 1 and 2.

The driving chains in the present instance comprise a series of links, pivotally connected with the front wheel axles, 11, to form the endless chain, 22. The driving chains pass around sprocket wheels, 23 and 24, at the lower and upper landings, respectively.

Either one or both of these sprocket wheels may be driven from any suitable source of power. The sprocketwheels are constructchain, and pass through the various curved tracks forming the lower run, with perfect freedom.

The construction of the driving chains to admit of the above noted characteristics is shown in Figures 9, 10 and 11. Referring more particularly to Figure 11, therein is illustrated only a portion of each endless chain such as connects adjacent front step axles. The front step axles are connected by a number of links of each chain, the links in the present instance being six in number, taking them collectively, that is. links opposite each other, so as to describe them more clearly, which- I will designate, 28, 28' and 28", referring to one of the chains only, as the other isidentical. One end of each of the links, 28 and 28", is pivotally connected with the step axles, 12, their other ends are pinned to opposite ends of the links, 28', between which are spacers or bushings, 27, this construction of the links of the chain is only between adjacent front step axles, the other links of the chain are plain so to speak, for an illustration, the links which I will designate, 29, may be thought as being a continuation of links, 29'. To cause the chain to form a rigid or straight line connection,

and also to accommodate itself to flex or bend as pointed out heretofore, there is formed integral with one end of each of the links 28 and 28" and both ends of the links, 28', projections 30 and 30, respectively,

which co-act with each other, resulting inthe heretofore statement.

An important feature not spoken of here tofore in the construction of this class of apparatus, is the placing of each of the front step wheels of each step within each .of the chains; as a result of this combination, each of the said wheels become a part of, or as a result, practically constitutes a part of each chain. With the above construction the downward thrust encountered taking place at the curved track portion of the escalator which connects the incline working run with the upper horizontal run is taken up at the point indicated by the front step wheels.

within the chain and their co-acting tracks, the action in the present case resulting in a shear. the parts, namely the step and chains traveling relatively to each other in a direction parallel in their plane of contact. A0-

cording to this feature in the present invention We eliminate the use of weighty parts of large dimensions such as the step axles, as they are eliminated from strain, this item being of considerable importance since it tends materially to reduce the cost of the apparatus. The steps in the present case are not limited as to their width as the down ward pull of the chain is at the outside of the steps proper, and not on a' line central with the center line of the steps, as in the single chain drive type of escalator in which case the steps are limited as to their Width.

It was stated heretofore that only one carriage 18 and 20 is used at each landing B and C respectively, to help, together with each of the two sprockets 23 and 24 respectively, to guide the steps from their righted to inverted position and vice versa in the operation of the escalator and that they were at opposite sides to each other. For the latter reason, that of being opposite to each other, is to cause the rear step wheels, they being the ones that en age the carriage, to wear equally, which they would not if both carriages were on the same side of the escalator. The former reason, that of using only the one carriage at each landing eliminates theusing of two carriages, they having to be of such a design to prevent wrenching the ,steps at this point. In the present case only one carriage is used as a guide; we thus have a three point suspension as shown in F igures 3 and 4, which requires comparatively little accuracy in carriage alignment.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Pat ent of the United States is:

1. In an endless conveye-r, comprised of transporting sections, having carrying wheels at the front and rear of the sections on either side thereof, driving chains and 2. In an escalator, comprised of steps, I

front wheels for the steps, and a driving chain comprising links, the wheels journaled between the links of the chain, and a way for the wheels.

3. In an escalator, comprised of steps, driving chains of double links for the steps outside of the ends of the steps, wheels for the front of the steps journal'ed between the double links, and ways for the wheels.

4. In an escalator, having a step, pairs of front and rear wheels for the step, one pair being outside of the other pair, ways on the sides of the escalator for the wheels, the ways comprised of rails or tracks, track extensions and curved carriages, the extensions being at one end of the rails and the carriages at the other end, at alternate ends of the ways, one of the tracks of each way being shorter than the other track of that way, sprocket wheels, at the ends of the shorter tracks, adapted to receive the outside wheels.

5. In an escalator, having a step, two pairs of front and rear wheels for the step, one pair being outside of the other pair, ways on the sides ofthe escalator for the wheels, the ways comprised of tracks, track extensions and curved carriages, the extensions and carriages being at alternate ends of the ways, the extensions and carriages of one of the tracks of each way being projected beyond the extensions and carriages of the other track of that way, sprocket wheels at the ends of the shorter tracks, and extending along the side of the ends of the longer I tracks, adapted to receive, at the ends of the ways, the outside wheels.

In testimony whereof we have signed ournames to this specification.

SAMUEL G. MARGLES. CHARLES W. E. NIENDORFF. 

